ALBANY, N.Y. – With two outs in the bottom of the seventh in a scoreless game, junior Amber Banas (Saugerties, NY/Saugerties) laced a pinch-hit double to plate sophomore pinch runner Emily O'Keefe (Albany, NY/Albany) and deliver Russell Sage College Softball a 1-0 walk-off Empire 8 Conference victory against Saint John Fisher.
The RSC win in the opening game of the doubleheader snapped a run of 19-consecutive E8 regular season victories for the visiting Cardinals, the two-time defending Conference Tournament Champions.
SJFU, which entered the Friday afternoon twinbill as winners of 27 of its last 28 E8 regular season contests, salvaged a split with an 11-2 triumph in the second game.
Junior Leah Madore (Williamsville, VT/Brattleboro Union) became the Russell Sage College Softball career strikeout leader during the shutout win (4-3). The right-hander, now with 263 career whiffs, tallied six K's to pass Kelsey Newberg '13 for the top spot. She allowed six hits and walked a pair of Cardinals. The RSC defense had some big plays behind Madore to help keep the game scoreless.
There was a strike 'em out, throw 'em out double play to end the top of the fifth, and sophomore right fielder Allison Kenyon (Mechanicville, NY/Mechanicville) gunned an SJFU player out at third for a double play to stem a potential first-inning Cardinal rally.
"I'm happy with our split today for our first conference doubleheader of the year," said RSC Head Coach Stephanie McKay. "The game one win showed that while we are a young team, we can still rely on our veterans like Madore and Banas to get the job done."
In the other half of the circle, RSC had difficulty with SJFU senior Ainsley Evanetski. The righty, who started the day leading the Conference in both innings pitched and strikeouts, only allowed four hits and fanned 16 Gators to take a tough loss (4-4).
Trailing 1-0 in the second game, the Cardinals (10-9/3-1 E8) used a three-run second inning to take a lead that they would not relinquish. SJFU put up crooked numbers in each of the second through seventh innings.
Sophomore infielder Annalise Tyler (Schenectady, NY/Schalmont) paced RSC with a 3-for-4 effort in the nightcap. Sophomore shortstop Ava Heffner (Valatie, NY/Ichabod Crane),and senior outfielder Madalyn Ring (Gansevoort, NY/South Glens Falls) added two hits apiece.
Looking ahead, RSC (5-11/1-1 E8) is scheduled to host a doubleheader against Nazareth on Sunday afternoon.
Gator Bites with Papa John's: RSC looks to return to the Empire 8 Conference Championship Tournament for the fifth-straight spring…12 returnees combine with eight newcomers on this year's roster…Ring, Tyler, and Madore highlight the returning Gators…Madore and Tyler earned second-team All-E8 honors last springs, while Ring made third-team All-Conference…Madore punched out 154 batters across 174 innings, both single-season program records in 2024..The righty, just the fifth Gator to reach 200 career strikeouts, opened the spring with 212 career K's, just 50 away from become the program's all-time leader…She moved into second place on the program's career strikeout record book on March 13 vs. Westminister…Ring commenced the season with 43 career stolen bases, good for fourth in RSC records…RSC opened its spring with eight contests in Florida between March 10-14… Sophomore outfielder Bella Julian (Cicero, NY/Cicero North-Syracuse) led the Gators with a .500 batting average during the time in the "Sunshine State"…Sophomore infielder/outfielder Allison Kenyon (Mechanicville, NY/Mechanicville), Ring, and junior catcher/outfielder Emma Heartquist (Stuyvesant, NY/Ichabod Crane) comprise the team's Leadership Committee.
